Nottingham Forest transfer lowdown on 'special' deadline day signing Tyler Bindon
He will have to wait a while for his Nottingham Forest debut but deadline day signing Tyler Bindon has already been tipped as a Premier League star of the future.
The 20-year-old joined the Reds from Reading before the winter transfer window closed on Monday. He put pen to paper on a deal until 2028 and then immediately headed back to the Royals on loan.
Bindon only linked up with the League One club in August 2023 but has already made 75 appearances for them. A regular starter, he also has three goals to his name.
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The centre-back has a collection of senior caps for his country, too - 13 of them at senior level. And he has been backed to achieve great things for New Zealand by a former All Whites captain.
Last month, ex-defender Ryan Nelsen was full of praise for Bindon amid speculation about the youngster’s future. He was being linked with the likes of Norwich City, Blackburn Rovers, Watford, Hull City and Coventry City at the time while Arsenal were said to have scouted him.
Asked whether Bindon had the credentials to play in the Premier League, Nelsen told The Unused Subs podcast (via New Zealand publication Friends of Football): “There’s a long way to go, obviously, but the answer is yes. I mean, he ticks pretty much every box to what is required to play at that level.”
He added: “Probably the biggest thing is that from where he was 18 months ago to where he is now, there’s been just a phenomenal kind of trajectory going up in a really lovely consistent way. He’s got height, he’s got speed, he’s got both feet, he can play with the ball, he’s not pressured. I don’t want to put pressure on the kid but it’s going to be fun to watch.”
Bindon had come up through the ranks at East Coast Bays in his homeland before moving to America at the age of 12, going on to join Los Angeles FC. His switch to Reading then followed and it is a measure of his character that he captained the team earlier this season.
Bindon comes from a sporting background as both his parents represented New Zealand - his mother, Jenny, in football, and his dad, Grant, in volleyball. The defender was eligible to play for the United States and featured for them at Under-19 level before switching allegiance.
He was handed his New Zealand debut in October 2023 and was part of the squad at last summer’s Olympic Games in Paris. When he does join up with Nuno Espirito Santo’s side at the City Ground, he will have a fellow countryman in striker Chris Wood to help him settle in. Another New Zealander, midfielder Marko Stamenic, is also on Forest’s books and is currently on loan at Olympiacos.
“If he keeps on the trajectory he’s going, he will arguably be the best player that’s ever played for New Zealand - it’s as simple as that,” Nelsen said. “He’s got everything that is needed - and some - at that level. But if you had to just put down a list of what’s needed to play at Premier League level or elite level, say Champions League level potentially, he’s got pretty much all of them.”
Bindon is described as a player with an ability to play through the lines and possessing a calmness under pressure with the ball. Reading boss Noel Hunt has referred to him as “special”.
"You might be surprised but I’m not surprised. The kid is unbelievable. He doesn’t know how good he is or how good he is going to be. He is the loveliest boy, and his character is so delightful to work with," he told the Reading Chronicle in December after Bindon had scored with an overhead kick against Mansfield Town. “He is inquisitive, asks questions and wants to know how things work and details of where he should be at any time - they’re the people you want to work with, as they all are.
"He’s a special kid. When he first came in, he trained with me and I walked into the office and said, ‘if we don’t sign him, I might as well not be here.’ In the first session to now, he’s outstanding."
